PORTAGE LA PRAIRIE, Man. – Manitoba sunflower growers have said no to a checkoff.
The National Sunflower Association of Canada had proposed the checkoff to cover costs of promoting the crop and funding sunflower research.
The Manitoba government sent ballots to a few hundred farmers who had grown the crop in the past. Last month they voted against the checkoff.
At a meeting in December, the outgoing president of the sunflower association said the group needs a reliable source of funds to keep it self-sufficient.
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Jim Pederson said the association received seed money two years ago from the provincial government and the Manitoba Rural Adaptation Council.
The association has also sold $30 memberships to 100 farmers and a dozen businesses.
Pederson said directors would rather work on sunflower issues than raise money and sell memberships.
“We pretty well have to have some kind of income level to sustain it,” said Pederson, who farms at Elm Creek, Man.
The association proposed a refundable checkoff of one-half of one percent, capped at $500.
The checkoff would have generated between $50,000 and $100,000 for the association.
At the association’s annual meeting, some farmers said the cap should be lower, while others thought there shouldn’t be a cap at all, since those who grow more sunflowers benefit more from research, and thus should pay more.
“Right now, it’s hard to sell because of the economic situation,” Pederson said. But in the long term, the checkoff could help make more money for farmers, he said.
More agronomic research could help farmers deliver consistent quantities and quality of sunflowers, enabling processors to tap into more markets, he said.
Farmers tend to grow sunflowers when wheat prices drop, and abandon it when wheat prices rise.
The farmers on the group’s board of directors are examining other options. They may choose to resurrect the checkoff in the future, said executive director Mel Reimer.
In the meantime, he added, the association will likely survey current and past members to find out how they would like to see the association funded.
